1villagegreenla.netOctober 2019

H I G H L I G H T SA Monthly Publication of the VGOA October 2019

Pet Limit ChangeWith little discussion, the board voted to change Section 15.3 of the Village Green Handbook to raise the limit on pets from one per unit to two. The 30-pound weight limit per animal re-mains unchanged.

Good News from the ArboristArborist Cy Carlberg had good news about our trees last month. After years of sycamore tree deaths from the polyph-agous shot hole borer, she reported, “We have seen a sharp reduction of their presence this year.” She also noted that herteam was no longer “seeing issues” with Chinese elms in the garage courts after several trees had suddenly toppled.

Hauser Overnight ParkingThe board voted to forward a petition from residents to City Councilman Wesson for posting of City signs on both sides of Hauser that declare, “No Overnight Parking from 2:00 am – 6:00 am without a Permit”. We will also request asphalt and pothole repairs and parking space striping.

More NewsThe board approved a resolution to record a lien. Delinquen-cies have been steadily declining, partly due to more aggres-sive board action … In October, the board will vote on the 2020 Operations Budget; interested owners can attend and-learn more about how their dues will be spent … The chande-lier and drapes have been removed from the Clubhouse as first steps of a fix-up in the works… Stop by and see the new look. □

September Board NewsCompiled by Lucy Fried Fund Raising Under the Stars

September 14 was a night of beauty, neighborly camaraderie, and fundraising for a good cause—more trees for our remarkable urban forest. It is believed to be the first fundraising event ever held for and in the Green and certainly one of the most beautiful settings the Clubhouse - and our residents - had ever seen.

“More than $10,000 was raised, and all will go toward 32 new (replacement) trees for the Green,” said Landscape Committee co-chair Jay Calhoun. Crowds-gathered throughout the night around a five-foot map showing the 58 locations marked for tree replacement now. “Kudos to new Tree Committee chair Laura Civiello,” he said. “She had mapped the trees and then helped the guests choose their desired trees and locations.”

97 residents poured into the soirée - eating, drin-king, socializing, and making good use of the various seating arrangements, including an outdoor firepit and Adirondack chairs!

Read more about the soiree and tree plantings on pages 4-5. □

SUMMER SOIREE

Inside Highlights: Management and Safety News Interview with Facilities Engineer Tree Soiree and Plantings Around the Green Events and Sustainability

Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6

Photo by Mickey Fielding

Village Green Highlights2 October 2019

Clubhouse FilmingFilming of scenes for tv’s “Winslow” took place on September 5 and 6 at the north entrance to the Clubhouse. More than 100 cast and crew members were onsite, including actress Reese Witherspoon. The filming netted $6,850 to the Association.

Garage InspectionsThe first round of inspections began on September 2 and will be completed by October 11. Re-inspections for various viola-tions will start in late October or early November.

Garage RestorationsTermite fumigation, carpentry repairs, and painting are under way in West Circle/East Circle and Court 16 garages. The proj-ect is expected to be completed by November 1.

Residential Insulation, Carpentry, and PaintingWork on buildings 6, 7, 13, 31, 52, and 59 is completed, and 71 is in progress. Three building remain: 74, 81, and 87l, with project completion scheduled for mid-January.

Residential Re-PipingBuildings 68, 75, 76, and 77 are completed, and the project moves to Building 78 on October 7. Work on Building 95 - the last building – is to start on November 4.

Concrete RepairsRepairs to selected sidewalks and patios were made last month. Also, concrete aprons were installed in six areas of the Green. (Editor’s note: In these areas, lawns had been dam-aged or bare soil impacted because the sidewalk turning radius wasn’t wide enough for some of the carts we need.)

TreesFollowing September’s campus-widewalk-through, con-sulting arborist Cy Carlberg recommended removing and replacing one tree, a saucer magnolia in Court 16 that “is 90% dead.” She also recommended pruning five trees: a pear tree in Court 1; an olive tree in Court 5; an Australian brush cherry in Court 4; and two strawberry trees in Court 14.

LandscapeGreencrew reported that there were no mainline irrigation breaks since the last report, but two broken valves are leaking and need to be replaced. The crew will be detailing courts 14-17 this month. □

MANAGEMENT NEWS

SEPTEMBER SAFETY NEWS IS GOOD NEWS!By John Howell, Safety Committee Foot Beats Coordinator

This summer, we had one of our lowest-ever summer crime rates at the Green! A big thank you to Public Security and Officer Willie Simmons and Post Commander David Bishop and their officers for all their help. Recently they helped us prevent the establishment of homeless bivouacs on Colise-um and Sycamore and have been an important crime deterrent on the property. Call them any time at (213) 703-0540 for an escort or to report anything that seems out of order in the Green.Also, a big shout out to all of you for securing your units and your vehicles and making sure that easy pick-ings are not available for those drifting through and looking for opportunities to take things. Getting to know your neighbors, reporting incidents in real time or as soon as you are aware of them, and joining an occasional Foot Beat to meet your neighbors and occupy our common space are things we can all do to keep the Green safe. □

Aug 22 - Sep 19, 2019

SEPTEMBER 2. HARASSMENT OF RESIDENT. Ct. 9 laundry room, 5:00 pm. A resident reported that someone had pinned an obscene note to one of her undergarments, signing it, “Homeless Guy.” □

Edited by Jordan Moore

PUBLIC SECURITY REPORT

Compiled from Operations Manager Sherri Giles’ September Board Report

3villagegreenla.netOctober 2019

HIGHLIGHTS INTERVIEW

With all those things to attend to, what is your most important role at this time?At the present time, my role is to be instrumental on all major upgrading. eMaint is a priority now because it will help us address maintenance issues more efficiently. It stores and can sort the work history of every unit and building by type of work, results, costs, materials, etc., and this also will help with long-term planning. I encourage residents not yet using eMaint to take the time to learn how to. Ask the office for help if you need it. It’s a great system. I love it!Another very important upgrading project for me is the electrical upgrade. I have established a relationship with the DWP to facilitate communication as things move forward. I’m also working with other staff interviewing three outside vendors regarding drawing plans for the “as built” old elector-al conduit and where new lines could be placed.

What maintenance responsibilities do you have?All members of the maintenance crew report to me. When Harold (Graves, Maint. Mgr.) can’t solve a problem, we discuss it.

What responsibility do you have regarding owners who want to make modifications in their units?I receive all the modification requests first. If the request is not complete, I send it back to the owner. I also visit the unit to see the situation. I can approve most requests, but I send any involving modification of historic features to the Design Review Committee, and they take it from there. Once the city has issued a final inspection okay, I visit the unit again.

Were you familiar with Village Green before you came here?No, and I was so surprised because I live very near the Green, and for years I have ridden my bike up and down Rodeo (Obama), never knowing what was behind those shrubs! When I saw the Green, I called it a well-maintained complex, like a hidden jewel. Now that I’ve been here awhile, I still think it’s a jewel, but like anything else that gets older, it needs upgrading and aligning with the times.

P.S. Alfonzo didn’t mention it, but Ms. Giles revealed he came to the U.S. in 1984 as part of the Belizean Olympics cycling team! □

VG Facilities Engineer

Alfonzo Casanova

Thank you for making time to introduce yourself to Highlights readers. You have a lovely lilt to your speech. Are you from a Caribbean island?No, but you’re close! I’m from Belize, which is in Central America on the southeastern border of Mexico just below the Yucatan Peninsula. It faces the Caribbean Sea on the east and Guatemala on the west. Belize was colonized by England, and you may hear all these influences in my speech.

How did you come to work at Village Green?I had known since childhood that I wanted to work in structures-related employment. In Belize, I had a BS in Structural Engineering. Here, I started again - earned my high school diploma at night school and my AA in AC/HVAC at Trade Tech., where I made the Dean’s Honor Roll; and then I took classes for years at USC to advance my career. I worked at USC for over 20 years (1996 -2019) as a building service manager with full accountability for all facets of the facility for three buildings and 30 employees. I finally decided to look for a more challenging ,upgraded position elsewhere.

You started in May as our facilities engineer, and many residents have appreciated the laundry room and fire extinguisher safety improvements you made soon after. But what exactly is a facilities engineer? A facilities engineer is responsible for everything related to the facilities on the property. This includes maintenance, staff/vendor/resident safety, training and enforcement, licensing, vendors and RFPs, security and parking enforcement, mainte-nance carts, and interaction with government bodies related to facilities (such at the DWP).

Photo by Terry Park

Village Green Highlights4 October 2019

TREES, TREES, TREES, TREES!

NEW MAPPING TOOL HELPS IN TREE REPLANTING EFFORTSBy Laura Civiello, Tree Committee Chair

The Tree Committee is happy to announce that the Phase II Tree Project is com-plete. Over 30 trees between courts 6-11 were planted in late August!

As you walk these courts, you will notice plantings of a wide variety of species, including Coast Live Oak, Brazilian Pepper, Chinese Elm, Incense Cedar and more. Referencing our historical documents, the committee and our arborist, Cy Carlberg, collaborated on a plan to replace missing trees. These new trees will not only provide much needed shade for residents as they mature but also move us closer to the restoration of our urban forest.

Phase III of the Tree Project is in the planning stages now and will soon be pro¬viding new trees for courts 12-17. □

30 MORE MISSING TREES REPLACED AT THE GREENBy Chris Scorniaenchi, Tree Committee Board Liaison

The centerpiece of the End-of-Summer Tree Soirée was a 60” map covered with red dots. The thirty-two residents who pur-chased trees in the fundraiser were able to scan the map and find the exact place where their tree would go. This physical map was actually the result of a digital effort.

After its Tree Soirée debut, the map will next be used for the Phase III Shade Tree planting, future tree fundraisers, and any other projects to improve the urban forest we all love.

Appreciation to Mickey Fielding and Laura Civiello for Soiree text and photos.

See more about the Soiree on Page 5.

In September, we set about consolidating 70 years of tree planting history into Google Earth – imagine Google Maps, but on steroids.

Consulting the historic plans that govern all planting decisions here at the Green, some 350+ trees were identified and marked

in Google Earth.

This map vastly simplifies our planning and planting processes going forward. A stripped down version can be downloaded to a mobile phone so our maintenance team, Green Crew, and tree committee members can quickly identify trees to be planted, new trees that need ongoing care, and even trees slated for removal.

5villagegreenla.netOctober 2019

ALL AROUND THE GREEN

Budget and Finance: 3rd Thursday (October 12), 7:00 pm We are proposing a tweak to parking ticket procedures in hope of reducing the workload on management and improving convenience for residents.

Communications: 2nd Tuesday (October 8), 7:00 pmWe welcomed Terry, the wonderful resident who stepped foward after last month’s Highlights ad for layout volunteers. If you have experience in graphic design or journalism, please get in touch. We still need you!

Cultural Affairs: 4th Thursday (October 24), 7:00 pmAfter a great Labor Day concert, we’re finalizing the details for the Oc-tober 26 Kids Halloween Party and a possible Halloween Drinks in the Clubhouse party. We could really use some help with these events.

Court Council: 1st Wednesday (October 2), 7:00 pmCourt 14 is still lacking a representative and alternate. If interested, contact Chairman Nat Hutton at 323-298-4400

Design Review: 1st Monday (October 7), 7:00 pmWe’re presenting Clubhouse paint samples and possibly curtain samples for board approval. The new DRC application has been launched and is now LIVE on the website.

Landscape: 2nd Monday (October 14), 7:00 pmWe are working with management and Green crew to get more mulch on the shrub beds more often, to hold moisture in the ground during hot weather and retard weed growth. Note: Trees meets concurrently with Landscape.

Safety: 2nd Wednesday (October 9), 7:00 pmDid you attend one or more of the emergency trainings this past summer? We’ll be contacting you to see about a court potluck with reps from L.A.’s emergency management department. □

Hard-working Soiree volunteers (from left) Lisa Jeffrey, Laura Civiello, Mickey Fielding, Chris Scornaienchi, Jay Calhoun. Not shown: Alex Stoltze, Genia Young and Josh Esquivel

Photo by Tamorah Thomas

Board Request to Residents VGOA Board of Directors

Please include in Highlights a reminder to residents to be mindful of noise and conversations in common areas.  This is particularly important early in the morning and late at night.  Car noises, conversations, and other “white noise” can disturb neighbors. For the sake of a peaceful community, we encourage all residents to be considerate of their neighbors and keep sound levels down. Thank you. □

REMINDER WINTER IS COMING From Alfonso Casanova, VG Facilities Engineer

Be sure your gas furnace or electric heater is ready BEFORE the cold sets in. Residents have waited weeks for appointments during the winter.

* Change or clean air filters; * Switch your thermostat to “heating” and see if it’s working correctly. * Clean/vacuum visible dust in and around the heating system area – dust can cause a malfunction;

VG Maintenance will check gas/electric heaters but does not repair them. We recommend residents call the So Cal Gas Company. (We also do not check or fix air conditioners.) If you decide to buy a new gas or electric furnace, you will need to find an outside ven-dor; the office may have some suggestions. Remember that you must use the same venting configuration you now have (like-for-like). You will need to work with the office to determine the venting configuration. □

Village Green Highlights6 October 2019

What is sustainability, and what does it look like in our neigh-borhood? The Sustainability Group at Village Green began as a response to the U.N. Climate Report outlining the existential threat of climate change, as residents felt driven to work with neighbors to make rapid lifestyle choices. The group hosted an informational talk on Sunday, Septem-ber 22 in the Clubhouse and discussed topics such as recy-cling, composting, mulching, moving towards a zero-waste lifestyle, and our local time bank.

Mary Sutton presented her work in Collective Remake, a worker cooperative that collects items with a CRV (California Redemption Value) to support people re-acclimating to soci-ety after prison/jail time. Other residents talked about what items can be recycled at VG, lessons learned in composting at the Village Green garden, adventures in moving toward a zero-waste home, and even a local time bank, where over 100 members swap time and skills to help each other out.

Attendees were quick to participate, and the whole event felt more like a neighborly chat among like-minded friends than a formal presentation. More information about what was presented on these topics is available on the Village Green website, www.villagegreenla.net.

Village Green residents can donate their CRV items to Collec-tive Remake by contacting Mary Sutton at msutton@collecti-veremake.com or calling (310) 709-8602. The VG sustainability group’s regular meeting is on the third Sunday of each month at 3pm in the Clubhouse, and they need all hands on deck! □

All events take place at the Clubhouse.

Board of Directors MeetingTuesday, October 22Homeowner comments start at 7:00 pm.

Halloween FestivitiesKids’ Halloween Party Saturday, October 26, 3-6 pm

Adults PartySunday, October 27, 4-7 pm □

OCTOBER EVENTS Village Green Residents Examine Sustainability

Gabriela Worrel, photo by Joanna Casucci

Celebration of Melanee Newkirk’s LifeSaturday, October 19, 1:30 pm, Clubhouse

Melanee’s VG friends and neighbors are welcome. □

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

October Foot BeatsA Safety Committee activity for all curious residents…

Mon. 1/7, 9 am - Meet at Hauser and Obama, walk west area.Tues. 10/15, 7 pm - Meet at office, walk central area.Wed. 10/23, 9:30 am - Meet at Court 1 entrance, walk east area.Thurs. 10/31, 9 am - Meet at Court 6 entrance, walk west area.

Preparedness Tip from L.A.’s Emergency Management Department

Are you stocking or re-stocking your go-bag? Remember to include some cash. ATMs and credit card read-ers may not be available after a disaster. Keep bills in small denominations of $1, $5, and $10. □

SMALL STEPS

2019 “Drinks on the Green” committee members Bernie Altman, Cynthia Cyrus, Bob McGinness, and Antonio Scaglione at the third and final event this summer. Camera shy: Melanie Oropallo and Patrick Mills. Look forward to more “Drinks” events next summer. □

Drinks On The GreenBernie Altman, Photo by Gregory